Female lifters: YOU WILL NOT LOOK THIS WAY!

I'd like to start lifting heavy. Do you need a spoter or are you ladies doing this alone? I don't have a gym buddy and I kinda like it that way due to my schedule but if I need one I'll have to find one. What would be the best book to buy so I can get this started? I'm already eating Paleo.

I usually lift alone.. Know your limits.. if you don't know, discover them. take one day in the gym to find your maxes (I really suggest a spotter for this).. or just start out small.. if you can do 15 reps of a certain weight, try going up, when you are really pushing yourself to do 3x10s or 4x8s (or whatever you want to accomplish) you know that's about what you can do.. work on that til you know you can do more and keep upping it.. When my BF is in the gym with me, I'll have him spot my squats so I can get a few more reps in at the end...

This.

Additionally, there are other ways you can lift heavy aside from barbell work (though barbell work is probably the most effective). I prefer a solid 5x5...at my max weight I can complete them (and I don't have a spotter). I don't even KNOW my 1 rep max lol. Additionally the rack at my gym is always completely packed...if I waited for it I'd never get my workout in. Because of this I use dumbbells mostly. I also like that I have to stabilize heavy weights with each arm specifically.

I would like to get back to barbell work eventually though (or at least begin alternating every couple weeks). There are very real differences in the end, and both have something to offer.

Thank you. My gym is usually quite busy so the dumbbells would work best for me as well. Yes, stabilizing works extra muscles or so I've read. Might have to YouTube some videos for fourm. Thanks again for all of the great information.

sjackson, if you have questions about form, don't be scared to ask questions! My workout buddy is shy, so she won't, but I will and I learn a lot.

I don't have a problem with lifting, but lifting won't "give me the body I want". Unless there's a lift that will make my huge gut shrink to flatness, I'm stuck with what my parents gave me.

Umm, that's why a large majority of us lift heavy...to get rid of the belly fat. ALL the lifts get rid of huge guts (assuming a healthy diet). Heavy, compound lifts tell your body to do stupidly incredible things to your body fat...and that's what your gut is made of, whether it be genetic, or not.

It's still fat.

Brilliant.

I don't have a problem with lifting, but lifting won't "give me the body I want". Unless there's a lift that will make my huge gut shrink to flatness, I'm stuck with what my parents gave me.

Umm, that's why a large majority of us lift heavy...to get rid of the belly fat. ALL the lifts get rid of huge guts (assuming a healthy diet). Heavy, compound lifts tell your body to do stupidly incredible things to your body fat...and that's what your gut is made of, whether it be genetic, or not.

It's still fat.

Brilliant.

Really makes me think that the amount of calories weight lifting actually burns is sorely mis represented in the database here. Especially if you super set or triple set your lifts

So shouldn't the measure be altered given that?

When I lift, I often triple set and work up a pretty decent sweat. I know I'm burning calories somewhere.

So shouldn't the measure be altered given that?

When I lift, I often triple set and work up a pretty decent sweat. I know I'm burning calories somewhere.

I don't bother to triple set...I just keep my heart rate up via my FT7 HRM. When it drops to 130/140bpm...I start the next set or lift. If you're lifting heavy enough...you're not going to be supersetting anything. You're going to be wanting to die between sets lol.

But the measure of calories isn't relevant to the benifits of strength training. I'd be MORE than happy if it only burned 2 calories, and still gave me the same hormonal benifits, because the calories out aren't what's telling my body to do what I want it to do, it's the hormones etc. The calories help to a small extent by adding deficit...but I don't want a huge deficit either so it works out fine. When it comes down to it, the calories simply do not matter when it comes to this.

With my polar, measured for 45min roughly, I generally burn anywhere from 400-600cal, but that number is skewed due to rest time, and I only use it as a guage of effort/intensity. I do enter it into my MFP exercises, but I don't use MFP as my guide for calories anyhow...so the skewed number isn't a big deal.

I bow to your awesomeness. That is inspiring work and a perfect example for why lifting works. Great job.

I don't bother to triple set...I just keep my heart rate up via my FT7 HRM. When it drops to 130/140bpm...I start the next set or lift. If you're lifting heavy enough...you're not going to be supersetting anything. You're going to be wanting to die between sets lol.

But the measure of calories isn't relevant to the benifits of strength training. I'd be MORE than happy if it only burned 2 calories, and still gave me the same hormonal benifits, because the calories out aren't what's telling my body to do what I want it to do, it's the hormones etc. The calories help to a small extent by adding deficit...but I don't want a huge deficit either so it works out fine. When it comes down to it, the calories simply do not matter when it comes to this.

With my polar, measured for 45min roughly, I generally burn anywhere from 400-600cal, but that number is skewed due to rest time, and I only use it as a guage of effort/intensity. I do enter it into my MFP exercises, but I don't use MFP as my guide for calories anyhow...so the skewed number isn't a big deal.

Squat day 3-4 total sets.

last set: 245 x 6 squat + 65lb dumbells seated military presses for 6 + crunches

Power cleans last set. 3-4 total sets

135lbs x 6 + press to over head on the last set. + bicep curls.

Deads last set 3-4 total sets

315lbs x 2 + individual should presses using one end of the bench bar with 55lbs + indivdiual bicep curls 30lbs


I wish there was a way to measure what the caloric benefits were of weight lifting was (during and after the fact). But I'll keep on keeping on right?

That's the important part, really. My workout today was very simple:

Workout B 634cal/49min (Polar FT7)
Row 4min Tabata #10 resistance
Seated Leg Press 455lbs 5*5
Dumbbell Shoulder Press 55lbs 5*5r
Weighted Extension 110lbs 5*5
Lat Pulldown 170lbs 5*5r
Dumbbell Curl 20lbs 5*5 (right arm)

Keep in mind, I'm just 2mos post surgery (lower biceps tendon rupture) on my right arm lol...so the weights are kind of low. The lat pulldown and the shoulder press weight will be repeated next Wednesday as my form at the end was shaky. The rest will go up 5lbs. Not one time during that 49 minutes did my heart rate drop below 135...with the vast majority of the time spent over 140.

Not entirely true tho for us broader upper bodied chics.. My frame is broad up top and smaller on my lower half.. and I bulk up easy on top which I can easily look like a body builder chic which I am tryin so hard to stay away from no joke.. I am trying to build a bigger lower body and lean out my top half... AND FOR ALL YOU SMALLER FRAMED GIRLS YEA YOU DONT/WONT BULK UP AS EASY AS GIRLS WITH BODIES LIKE MINE.. I WOULD BE A PERFECT BODY BUILDER BUT I WOULD NOT WANT TO LOOK LIKE THAT CUZ TO ME ITS NASTY..

I am NOT small framed dear (now granted I have big hips to go with my big shoulders). I tried as hard as possible to bulk. I ate 3000 calories a day and lifted 3-5 times a week for 4 months. I can bench 100lbs, and dead lift 175lbs. I gained 10lbs but am still a size 8. I do not look like the original body builder because I don't use steroids, I also still have a body fat percentage above 20%.

If you really don't like the muscular look, that's fine. You are definitely entitled to your opinion but no, even you won't look like that body builder accidently.

I love threads like these. It's so nice to see women crusading for other women with honest, helpful information that truly does give the results it's claimed to.

Thanks to the OP, and to all of you other women out there doing the same thing.

:flowerforyou: